Background

Throughout his life, Mickey was devoted to education and to Harvard, with a special focus on Chicago-area students interested in attending Harvard College. One of Mickey’s great life passions was to ensure that as many students as possible from the Chicago Region were admitted to the College. For more than 50 years, Mickey led the charge as Chair of the HCC Schools Committee by ensuring that applicants from the area received personal college interviews.

Today, the Schools Committee, co-chaired by Steve Baird and Julie Palmer, is committed to continuing Mickey’s legacy by championing local Harvard College candidates and upholding Mickey's aspirational goal to offer interviews to as many applicants as possible. With the support of one part-time employee and two software systems, the Committee is able to do so. This past year, the Committee arranged more than 1800 local interviews with more than 400 alumni volunteers.

Mickey also cared deeply about education, especially early childhood education, and the positive impact Harvard University could have on promoting and improving education across the world. HCC hopes to carry on Mickey’s legacy by sharing knowledge around current educational research, findings, and projects with Chicago-area alumni.